Heel-cushion.



No. 840,170. PATENTED JAN. 41, 1907.

J. T. STORY.v

HEEL CUSHION.

APPLICATION FILED KAY 7, 1906.

TTORNE YS UNITED STATES PATENT OEEIOE.

. Specification of Letters Patent. s

Application led May 7, 1906.A Serial No. 315,639.

Patented Jan. 1, 1907..

T aZZ whom it mayA concern/:

, Be it known that I, J OHN THOMAS STORY, a citizen of the UnitedStates, residing at New York,'in the county of New York and State of NewYorkhave invented a new and useful Heel-Cushion, of which the followingis a specification.

i My invention relates to cushions for footwear, and has for its objectto improve the construction of heel-cushions of that character intendedto be used inside a bootor shoe for cushioning the shocks incident to'Walking and to ease the feet Awhen standing for any considerable.length of time.

' The invention consists in the various details of construCifOn andarrangements of parts,A as will be more fully described hereinafter andlinally pointed outv in the claims appended hereto.

In the accompanying drawings, whichillus trate an embodiment of theinvention, Figure l is a longitudinal section through a shoe with mylimproved heel-cushion applied thereto. Fig. 2 is a perspective view ofthe heelrcushion. Fig. 3 is a vertical longitudinal section showing aiiller-piece applied tA v"the cushion, and Fig. 4 is a perspectiveviewzof the-fillerpiece.

Referring to the drawings, 1`-represents a shoe of ordinary construetionhaving ,the heel-cushion 2 fitted therein. The cushion com rises aninnersole made of a suitable flexible material-as, forinstance, a web ofhair, felt, or a piece of cork composition-as shown, having a backing ofcloth 2 and provided at its heel portion with a member 3,

referably of the same material. This membe 3 underlies the heel portion4, which const tutes the other member of the heel-cushio and is sha edto correspond thereto.

"If desired, t e'sole" portion of the Acushion can be dispensed with,'sothat the` cushion devicef'is composed simplyoftwo members of suitableshape toiconform to the heel of the shoe.

Furt ermore, if it should Vbe desired the lower member 3 may be providedwith a sole portion and be usedin conjunction with the sole portion ofthe inner sole or exclusive of the same. In this instance the member 3is secured at its front end to the innersole 2 .by one or more rows oftransverse threads 5 `or in any other suitable manner. and rear edges ofthe lower member are free, so esto permit of the two members spreadingThe side apart during the act of walking, and thus p produceVentilating-currents of air.

' from sheets of hair which compris On each of the .opposed surfaces oiithe.

rows of stitches. vAs shown in Fig. 2, 7 represents the hair, 8 thecloth, and 9 the rows of stitches that comprise the cushions or pads.These ads are .attached to the lilexible mem? bers o the heel-cushion-inany desired manner. By preference, however, the cloth sides of the padsare presented to the members, and the pads 'are attached by means of oneor more rows of stitches l0, that pass through the'cork composition, thecloth glued thereto, and the cloth backing land hair of the cushions orpads.

As will be seen in Fig. 2, the securingstitches l0 pass over the ends ofthe stitches 9, so as to retain the hair intact on its backing-cloth. Itwill thus be seen that by facing both o f the members 3 and 4 thecushion effeet is increased and a considerable degree of resiliencybetween the members is `produced, in virtue of which when the twomembers are compressed by the heel they. immediately spread apart whenthe weight is relieved, so that currents of air are produced whichventilate the cushion and shoe.

In connection with the heel-cushion I may employ iillerpieces, at leastone or more, as may be desired. The purpose of these llerpieces is toincrease the total thickness of the cushion according to the requirementfor producing a betterfit, it being understood; of course, that withready-madeshoes the fit may be more or less perfect with differentplersons, and`,by means of the filler-pieces the t of theshoe can beimproved. As shown in Figs. 3 and 4, the filler-piece 12 comprises apiece of iie;;ible material shaped to correspond to the contour of themembers 3 and 4 and is adapted to be loosely held between the saidmembers. These parts of the heel-cush ion may alsobe faced with apadding of hair, if desired.

The innersole has been illustrated without a cushion at the ball andinstep portions thereof, but I desire to have it understood that thewhole under side of the innersole may be provided with a cushion, ifdesired. This may be separate from the cushion 7 at the heel portion, orit may form a art' thereof and attached to the insole Z by t e seme rowof stitching that secures the heel-cushion 7 to the insole, as Will bereadily understood.

What I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. A heelfcushion, comprising tvifo connected exible members, pads onthe adjacent lsurfaces of the members, and a row of stitches around theedge of each member for securing the pad thereto, each pad com risstitches holding the twotogether andl the,

. ends of which are secured by the-peripheral row of stitches.

3. A heel-cushion, comprisin two iexible members, stitches for uniting tem, pads on the adjacent surfaces of the members, and a` row ofperipherals'titches oneach member for securing 4the pad thereto, eachpad comprising a web of curled heir, a cloth backing therefor, and rowsof stitches holding the two emiro together and the ends-ofl Which aresecured by the peripherel row of stitches, in combination with aiIler-piece of flexible material substantially like the said members andadapted to be loosely held between and in.

contact withl the pads on the latter.

4. A heel-cushion, comprisin two Horrible members, stitches for unitingt ern, pads on the adjacent surfaces ofthe members, and a filler-pieceloosely arranged between the seid member and in contact with said pads.

5. As an article4 of manufacture, an insole,

e cushion attached thereto, a member secured et the heel portion of theinsole, a cushion on the said memberpresented to the cushion on theinsole, stitches for Securing said member' on lthe insole', afiller-piecel looselyl arrangedbetweenthe heel portion and said mem 1'and disposed in contact with the' cushions thereof, and stitches forsecuring the cushions on the said member and the insole', said cush ionscomprising webs of suitable fabricoi substantially the same"elastici-ty".`

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own I have hereto affixedImy signature in the presence of two Witnesses.

-JOHN THOMAS STORY. l/Vitnesses WILLIAM vGEo.v S'ronr, HoWA'RD I-I.STORY.

